Welcome to the Rye Smiles for Life Blog

It’s amazing how advanced today’s diagnostic tools are, and nowhere is this more true than with dentistry and oral care. Current technology allows for all sorts of conditions to be diagnosed with simple, painless tests, and these tests can give the dentist a wealth of information about the best way to move forward with your Personalized Dental Plan. This, in turn, will help you enjoy better oral health, and can make you aware of any issues or concerns that may arise in the future.

One of the most effective diagnostic tools is the DNA test, which is conducted by using a saline rinse to obtain saliva from the mouth. The test takes less than a minute, and te results of the test can tell the dentist what kinds of bacteria are living in your mouth, and how dangerous the quantities are. While it may seem that this is not a very useful tool, it can actually help determine your risk for developing periodontal disease, as well as other, more serious conditions like heart disease and diabetes.

Although many patients who come in for a DNA test present symptoms of gingivitis such as bleeding gums or persistent bad breath, such symptoms are not necessary in order for the test to be helpful, and in fact catching issues before they arise is a good plan for those who want to have a healthy mouth for as long as possible. The earlier these dangerous bacteria can be detected, the better the chances for avoiding serious issues down the road.

Another helpful test is the HPV saliva test. Detecting HPV viruses in the early stages can help with subsequent early detection of oral cancers. However, the HPV test is not something to fear – in reality, most oral HPV infections to do not lead to cancer. The purpose of the test is rather to become aware of any infections so that those patients who are at high risk can be monitored. As HPV infections are often free of symptoms, a patient may have the virus and not be aware of it. Again, the test involves a saline rinse, and takes less than a minute, and the knowledge from the test results can be invaluable for future treatment.

These tests can be scheduled by contacting us and making an appointment. Don’t let your oral health be plagued by question marks!

With the holidays wrapping up soon, it’s nearly time to start thinking about the year ahead. Historically, the holidays are not a time of tremendous self-discipline; in fact, it’s right around the end of the year when we slacken off the most, perhaps not paying as much attention as usual to things like good nutrition. These days and weeks of over-indulgence can wreak havoc on the teeth, but if you have a plan in place to get back on track, you can start the new year off with confidence.

If you’ve never quite had the smile you’ve always dreamed of, the new year is a great time to make a renewed commitment to the best oral care possible. Whether you just want to get more regular checkups, or you need more extensive treatment like corrective or cosmetic procedures, we can work with you to create a plan that will fit your budget and your lifestyle, and that will help you have a beautiful, healthy smile for the rest of your life.

Coming in for a checkup is the first step in practicing better habits. At that time, the dentist can also discuss with you any concerns you have about your teeth, and any changes you’d like to make to how your smile looks. Your health is the primary concern, of course, but the cosmetic appearance of your teeth can be important, too, as it affects things like your confidence and self-esteem. Don’t hesitate to bring any of these issues up at your appointment – we want you to have a smile that you can be proud of on every level.

If your recent oral hygiene habits have left something to be desired, don’t despair. The holidays can certainly get the best of us, but the important thing is to get back into good practices as soon as possible. Some of this involves things you can do at home, like brushing regularly and flossing, but other things require professional care, like getting regular checkups and cleanings, and seeking help for minor issues before they develop into major ones.

Now’s a perfect time to make an appointment for the new year, and start things off the right way. You can make this your best year ever, so you may as well have a healthy, beautiful, and confident smile to go along with that!

So you’ve said it again and again – “I’m going to get all my dental problems taken care of once and for all” – and yet you still can’t seem to get the courage to make that appointment and get the procedures you need for the healthy, beautiful smile you want.

You’re not alone. Fear of the dentist is an extremely common condition that affects millions of people. Usually it revolves around an aversion to the sights, smells, sounds, and sensations associated with being in the dentist’s chair, but over time the fear can spin out of control and cause you to avoid the dentist at all costs, even at the expense of your health.

Luckily, fear of the dentist does not have to be a problem, and in fact for the past three decades even our most anxious and nervous patients have had calm and comfortable dental visits, thanks to the wonders of sedation dentistry. Sedation dentistry is available to you if you need to have dental work done, but are hesitating to make an appointment out of fear that it will be too painful or uncomfortable for you.

Many people choose sedation dentistry for various reasons. Some are having complex procedures done that could be stressful. Others have had bad dental experiences in the past and do not want to repeat the trauma. Still others simply want their dental visit to be as pleasant as possible. Sedation dentistry may be a good option for you for any of these reasons.

The sedative used in our sedation dentistry is administered via a small pill that you will have to take an hour before your dental appointment. You will then need a companion to drive you to our office, as well as picking you up to drive you home. While you are at our office, we will take care of you and keep you warm as you become drowsy. After your dental procedures are finished, you will wake up gradually with little or no memory of your time in the dentist’s chair.

Although you will not be unconscious during your sedation dentistry, you will be deeply relaxed and comfortable. Most patients come out of the sedation having experienced no discomfort, and feeling refreshed. If you would like to learn more about how sedation dentistry can help you, do not hesitate to contact us to set up a consultation.

Quality dental care is not just about going to the dentist when an emergency rises; it’s a comprehensive system of keeping your teeth and mouth healthy on an ongoing basis. Of course, when it comes to your smile, there’s also the aesthetic aspect to think about – not only do you want everything to be healthy, you also want to have the brightest and nicest-looking smile you can possibly have.

If you know that your smile does not look as good as it could, now is a great time to start thinking about setting up a cosmetic dentistry plan for 2013. What better way to start the new year than with a resolution to finally do something about those cosmetic issues that have been bothering you for so long?

Regardless of the level of care you need, we can set up a plan to help you get the most beautiful and radiant smile you can have. You may benefit from procedures like dental bonding, gum re-contouring, or the latest porcelain veneers, which look like natural teeth and are resistant to staining.

For those who need a more involved level of care, our smile makeover can help improve your confidence and raise your self-esteem to new highs. Ideal tooth shape and length are taken to account, and whether reaching that ideal requires minor procedures or full mouth reconstruction, Dr. Rye will discuss the most appropriate options to get you the results you want.

It’s important to recognize just how much the appearance of your teeth affects your feelings about yourself. Your smile is one of the first things that people notice about you, and if you’re embarrassed about how your teeth look, you may hide your smile, or feel apologetic about showing it to others. The good news is, no matter how little or how much work you need, you can have the smile of your dreams, and all it takes to get started is an initial consultation, where you can discuss what you want and start making plans to achieve those goals.

Now is the perfect time to get the ball rolling – with the holidays quickly approaching, give yourself the gift of a better 2013, with the smile you deserve!

If you have had any experience with over-the-counter teeth whitening products, you may have been disappointed with the overall results. With many products, the whitening results are less than spectacular, and other products produce decent results at first, but the effects are not long-lasting. In addition, many of these products involve trays that are of course not custom-made for your bite, which makes the entire whitening process quite messy. Others involve strips that don’t stay put, which again can lead to uneven and lackluster results.

Professional whitening in a dentist’s office is a different story. The dentist can use state-of-the-art treatments that simply aren’t available in drug stores, and you even have a choice between in-office or at-home treatments. Either way, you can expect beautiful, white teeth at the end of your course of treatment, with long-lasting results that you can be proud of.

For those who have time during the day to come in for a series of appointments, in-office power bleaching is a great choice. This option provides the fastest whitening, in a controlled environment where the dentist conducts the procedure. A guard is placed over the gums to protect them, and a bleaching solution is applied to the teeth. Once the solution is applied, a laser is used to activate it. The process takes about one hour, and most patients require between three and six visits for optimum results.

If taking time off to come into the office for multiple visits simply isn’t possible within your schedule, then at-home bleaching is more appropriate for you. This is still a professional-quality system, not at all like over-the-counter products, and the trays you will be given are custom-made to fit your teeth. At night before you go to bed, you simply fill the trays with the whitening solution given to you by the dentist, and wear the trays every night until your teeth are as white as you would like them. For most patients, this takes about four weeks, but the bleaching time may be shorter if you have milder levels of discoloration.

Regardless of which system you choose, the first step is to make an appointment for a teeth whitening consultation. The sooner you do it, the sooner you’ll have a gleaming, confident smile.

You’ve probably seen hundreds of advertisements for different over-the-counter teeth whitening systems, and maybe you’ve even tried a few yourself. If you’ve been disappointed with the results, it can make you hesitate before trying another system because of the time, effort, and cost involved.

It’s important to remember that there’s a big difference between over-the-counter whitening products and getting a professional whitening treatment at your dentist’s office. As you might expect, the dentist can give you a much more thorough and powerful whitening treatment, leading to a brighter, more even color, and longer-lasting results. If you really want your smile to look as good as it can, there’s no substituting for professional, tailored care.

Of course, even with professional whitening, you have options. For those who have a busy lifestyle and don’t have a lot of extra free time during the day to spare, an at-home whitening system will probably be prescribed. For this option, you only have to come in for one appointment, at which custom made trays will be made to fit over your teeth. The trays are comfortable to wear and feel similar to wearing a mouth guard.

Along with the trays, you will be given a whitening solution to use. In the evening before bedtime, you simply fill the trays with the solution and then wear the trays to bed. Although this method of teeth whitening may take up to four weeks to see the desired results, it doesn’t take any time out of your schedule, as the bleaching happens literally while you sleep. If coming in for office visits is an issue, this would probably be the best option.

Your other choice is in-office whitening, in which you actually come in for appointments and have your whitening treatments done by the dentist. This method of whitening is called power bleaching, and takes significantly less time overall compared to the overnight method. With just three to six appointments lasting an hour each, you can have the white teeth you have always wanted, but of course you’ll have to make time in your schedule to come in for the appointments.

If you’re ready to schedule an appointment or a consultation, get in touch with us and we can get you the information you need. There’s no reason to continue to feel self-conscious about your teeth when there are professional whitening systems available for every lifestyle.

Do you have perfectly straight teeth, but still somehow lack confidence in your smile? It could be the color of your teeth that is giving you doubts about how good your smile actually looks. Tooth discoloration can happen so slowly, over a period of months or even years, that you may not be able to pinpoint it right away as the cause of your dissatisfaction with how your teeth look, but most people do experience some dullness of tooth color at some point in their lives.

Discoloration can happen for many reasons. It may be that you are a regular coffee drinker, or that you smoke cigarettes on a daily basis – both of these habits can cause yellowing of the teeth. In fact, most foods and beverages, when taken in great enough quantity, can affect the color of your teeth. If it can stain fabric, it can probably stain your teeth over time, as well. There are also some medications that can cause your teeth to change color, but even just the natural aging process can be a factor.

In other words, you’re not alone if you feel that your smile simply isn’t as brilliant as it used to be. Wanting whiter teeth is a very common request from dental patients, and at our Fairfax dental practice we have two options for teeth whitening to cater to different needs.

If you want quick results and have the time to come into our office for in-person appointments, power bleaching may be the best option for you. With as few as three sessions, you can get stunning results that last. These treatments do offer the fastest, most powerful whitening, but of course you will need to have time in your schedule to come in for the appointments.

For those who would prefer to have an at-home teeth whitening solution, with just one appointment a mold can be made of your teeth, and you will be given a tray to take home with you. At night, you fill the tray with a special whitening solution, and wear the tray all night. Although these treatments may take up to four weeks to achieve the desired result, for some people the trade-off of convenience is worth it.

If you are concerned about the color of your teeth and would like to whiten your smile, contact us today for a consultation.

For some people, the very thought of having to go to the dentist triggers a panic attack. But even for those who don’t have a full-blown phobia, there can still be a lot of anxiety about making a dental appointment. This reasons behind this fear are the subject of a new study being conducted at West Virginia University, in conjunction with several other research facilities. The goal is to determine what causes patients to avoid proper dental care, which sometimes leads to even worse problems, rather than simply making an appointment and seeking help.

The researchers are hoping to develop a therapy-based solution for those with extreme dental phobia, i.e. those who refuse to make a dental appointment under any circumstances, and let tooth decay other issues get to a critical point where tooth loss is inevitable. Some of the subjects in the study have been suffering from dental problems for longer than two years, avoiding proper care because their fear keeps them from seeking help.

The good news is, if you are someone who suffers from dental anxiety or have fears about visiting the dentist for major procedures, there are already systems in place that can help you get through your dental appointment in the most comfortable and relaxed way possible. Sedation dentistry is something we have been offering at our practice for more than three decades – we began providing it in 1981 because we saw how many patients were anxious about their dental appointments, and we wanted to give them a more pleasant experience.

Sometimes a fear of the dentist comes from a bad experience in the past. Sometimes it’s about a fear of needles or having injections. Sometimes the sounds and smells that come along with a dental appointment can trigger unpleasant feelings. If any of these apply to you or you have any other reason for fearing your dental appointments, it’s important to share your concerns so that a solution can be reached and you can receive the best and most pain-free dental care available.

Even if you have a severe dental phobia, it’s important to seek help when you need it. Sedation dentistry has helped countless patients for more than thirty years, so if you feel like you’re too anxious to have a necessary procedure done, let us discuss options with you to help make you more confident about restoring your smile to its original, healthy state.

It’s that time of the year – the kids are heading back to school. Although it’s impossible to keep tabs on them 24/7, you can instill some good habits in your children so that while they’re at school, they have the best possible chance of avoiding the issues that can lead to tooth decay. Here are four things that can really make a difference in the oral health of the young students in your family.

1. Consistent brushing at home. A strong and consistent habit of brushing teeth twice daily, once before school and once before bed, is probably the best defense against tooth decay in young children. Remember that brushing is not something to be rushed through – teach your child that slow, thorough brushing is necessary in order to get teeth really clean.

2. Rinsing at school. Although brushing may not be practical or even possible after lunch at school, even a quick rinse with water can help remove the food particles that lead to bacteria development. Rinsing also helps return the pH in the mouth to a more neutral level, which can help protect tooth enamel, and it also helps prevent bad breath.

3. Good eating habits. Keeping a close eye on your child’s nutrition is essential not only for their overall health, but for the health of their teeth, as well. Processed, sugary snacks are okay on occasion, but should not be a daily treat. Also to be avoided are acidic sports drinks and carbonated beverages, both of which can wreak havoc on tooth enamel.

4. Regular dental visits. Although it can be difficult to make time, it is important to keep up with regular dental visits during the school year. Doing so is a great preventative measure, as early detection of cavities and other tooth problems means that less school will have to be missed as a result. Also, regular cleanings can help keep things like plaque in check, which in turn will mean fewer issues in the future.

It’s also important to remember the connections between oral health and overall health. People with good oral hygiene habits set themselves up for better health in general. As more connections are discovered between poor oral health and major diseases, it becomes more important than ever to assure that your child picks up good habits right from the start, so that those habits can be carried through into adulthood.

We’ve all been there – you’re having a nice conversation with someone, and then suddenly you catch a whiff of their breath, and it’s terrible. Bad breath can really turn people off, it can actually end relationships, and in terms of first impressions, it’s just about the worst ambassador you can have. Bad breath is caused by so many different things, so it can be difficult to know how to prevent it, but start with these tips and you’ll be much more likely to have fresh breath at those important moments.

1. Brush and floss regularly. Good oral hygiene at home is the first and most important step in the fight against bad breath. Brushing and flossing daily is essential – you’ll want to keep your teeth as free from plaque as possible. Don’t forget to brush your tongue – many particles of food and odor-causing bacteria collect there.

2. Get regular dental checkups. Tooth decay, gum problems, and infections can all lead to horrible bad breath that doesn’t respond to any standard remedies. Make sure you see your dentist for regular checkups to keep your mouth in good shape, and of course make an appointment as soon as you suspect any other problems.

3. Be careful about mints. Many people carry mints around to help combat bad breath after meals, but depending on what kind of mints they are, they may actually be contributing to the problem. Many mints have sugar in them, which increases the bacteria in your mouth that cause bad breath. Even sugar-free mints, however, aren’t a great solution, as they do nothing to get rid of the bacteria, and simply cover the smell up temporarily.

4. Get in the habit of rinsing. If you’re out somewhere where brushing isn’t convenient, rinsing your mouth with water after meals and drinks can have an impressive effect on your breath. Not only does it help remove any food particles that may be hanging around, it also helps bring the pH level in your mouth back to a more neutral level. This in turn can help prevent bacteria from taking over in the mouth.

5. Avoid the obvious culprits. Steering clear of things like garlic, onions, coffee, and cigarettes is a must if you’re going on a date or have a one-on-one interview coming up. Keep in mind that brushing after these doesn’t necessarily reduce the bad breath, as the offending substances in things like garlic get into your bloodstream and lungs, where you can breath them out even days later.